Sweet Potato Burritos

First, I have to thank my good friend, Kelly, for this awesome recipe. I have to admit, I was a little skeptical at first about putting sweet potatoes in a burrito; however, these were delicious and and the sweet potatoes made for a really flavorful, interesting twist on a burrito.

Ingredients:
-1 TBSP EVOO
-3/4 C onion, diced
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-2 cans of beans (you can use any kind, I did 1 can kidney and 1 can white)
-1/2 C water
-1.5 TBSP chili powder
-1 tsp cumin
-2 tsp mustard
-dash of cayenne, or more to taste
-1.5 TBSP soy sauce
-2 sweet potatoes, mashed
-6 large flour tortillas
-2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
-chopped cilantro and green onion (optional)

Steps:
(Preheat oven to 350 degrees)
1. Heat oil in a medium skillet, and saute onion and garlic until soft. Stir in beans, and mash.

2. Gradually stir in water, and heat until warm. Remove from heat, and stir in the chili powder, cumin, mustard, cayenne pepper and soy sauce.
3. Divide bean mixture and mashed sweet potatoes evenly between the flour tortillas. Top with cheese (save 1 cup for using on the top of the burritos). Fold up tortillas burrito style, and place in a pan sprayed with Pam.

4. Bake for 9 minutes.
5. Pull out and top with remaining one cup cheese. Broil until the top of the cheese is melted, about 2-3 minutes.
6. Top with cilantro and green onion and serve.

"Falafel" with Avacado spread

I got this recipe from Cooking Light, and the "falafel" is in quotes because Cooking Light called it falafel, but I disagree. Really these seemed more like homemade veggies burgers. In any case, they were flavorful, and super easy to make. I recommend checking this recipe out.

Ingredients:
-1 can pinto beans
-1/4 C finely crushed tortilla chips
-1/2 C shredded cheese, such as cheddar
-1 egg
-2 T chopped green onion
-2 T finely chopped cilantro
-several dashes of cumin
-dash of salt and pepper
-handful of spinach (optional)
-several slices of red onion (optional)
Avocado Spread
-2 avocados, mashed with a fork
-1 T lime juice
-couple dashes garlic salt and pepper
-salsa

Steps
1. Make the spread. This is basically just guacamole, which I have a more detailed recipe for here

2. Mash the pinto beans in a medium sized bowl with a potato masher. Add in the rest of the ingredients (from tortilla chips to salt and pepper) and stir until everything is coated with egg.

3. Shape mixture into 4 burger like patties.
4. Heat a frying pan coated with cooking spray over medium heat, and add patties. Cook for about 4 minutes on each side, or until browned.

5. Spread guacamole on pita, add some spinach and sliced onion, and top with the "falafel."

Chicken Sausage, Fennel, Onion, and Gouda Pizza

This was overall really easy and tasty (and even better today for lunch!). I had never cooked with fennel bulb before, but the sweet onion + fennel combo was really nice and in my book, anything with Gouda is a win. Also, I bought 2 pre-made pizza crusts and doubled the ingredients so that we would have leftovers for lunch. (Note: the ingredients listed below are for 1 pizza.)

Ingredients:
-1 pre-made pizza crust, like Boboli
-2 links chicken sausage, removed from casing
-3/4 C Gouda, shredded
-1 C fennel bulb, finely diced

-1.5 C sweet onion, sliced into thin strips
-1 T oil
-T chives




 Steps:
(preheat oven at 450)
1. Saute chicken sausage until browned (~7 mins) and break it into small pieces as it cooks.
2. Transfer sausage to bowl.
3. Add the diced onion and fennel to the chicken sausage pan (I used the grease from the chicken sausage to add flavor), cover with a lid, and saute for about 15-20 minutes over medium heat until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. I had to add 1 T of EVOO to keep things from sticking.

4. Once onion mixture is done, spread it evenly on top of pizza. Add the sausage and cheese.
5. Cook at 450 for about 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
6. Top with chives.

Chicken Sausage and Gnocchi Soup

This was really flavorful and came together SUPER fast (i.e., under 15 minutes). This is a great recipe for a night when you don't have much time to cook. Also, the original recipe (which I modified, but is from Cooking Light) called for turkey sausage, but at least at my grocery store the chicken sausage generally has a lot less fat, so that's what I use.

Ingredients:
-3 links chicken sausage, removed from casings (I recommend Hot Italian flavor, if you can find it)
-16 oz vacuum packed gnocchi
-2 cups H20
-1 can beef broth
-2 cans of diced Italian tomatoes
-1/2 diced onion
-1.5 tsp minced garlic
-salt and pepper to taste
-shredded Parmesan (optional)
-cooking spray

Steps:
1. Spray some Pam in a in a large dutch oven (or a big soup pot) and saute the onion and chicken sausage for about 9 minutes (or until sausage is browned), breaking up the chicken sausage with the back of a wooden spoon as you go.

2. Add 2 cups water, beef broth, tomatoes, and gnocchi, and garlic. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 4-5 minutes or until gnocchi float to the stop.

3. Season with salt and pepper, and top with shredded Parm.

Vegetarian Stir-Fried Rice

This recipe was okay, but not outstanding. This was my first time making stir-fried rice, so if any of you have any suggestions about how to make it tastier, let me know. Perhaps it just needs to be eaten out of a Chinese takeout box to be properly enjoyed? And why is it that it's only in the movies that Chinese takeout actually comes in the little boxes? This is actually a perennial frustration of mine, to the point where my mom bought me the little boxes so that I could put my Chinese food in them (yes, my mom is that awesome). But I digress...on to the recipe...

Ingredients: (you could modify the veggies to whatever you prefer)
-1 red bell pepper, diced into bite size pieces
-2 handfuls broccoli florets
-1 package drained tofu, cut into bite size pieces
-2.5 cups cooked brown rice
-1 bunch green onions, chopped (use the green part too)
-1.5 tsp minced garlic
-3 TBS EVOO (or peanut oil if you have it)

Sauce
-1  tablespoon  brown sugar
-1  tablespoon  ketchup (recipe called for fish sauce, but I used this instead)
-1  tablespoon soy sauce
-1  tablespoon  fresh lime juice
-1  teaspoon chile sauce

Steps
1. Cook rice as directed.
2. Chop up veggies.

3. Whisk sauce ingredients together
3. Heat up 1-2 TBS oil and fry rice for about 2 minutes, until lightly browned. After browning, transfer rice to a large bowl.
4. Heat up a little bit more oil and saute tofu for about 4 minutes.
5. Add sauce to pan and bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 1 minute or until liquid thickens slightly, stirring occasionally. Add tofu and sauce to the rice and toss.
6. Wipe pan clean with a paper towel; return pan to medium-high heat.
7. Add a bit more oil, and stir-fry broccoli and bell pepper about 3 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
8. Add the green onion bottoms and garlic and stir-fry 1 minute.
9. Add the tofu-rice-sauce mixture to pan and cook 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

10. Serve with green onion top garnish.

Rolled Oat Breakfast Bars

I have to thank my good friend and baker extraordinaire, Jess, for this super easy, super tasty recipe, and Jonathan's mom for sending us the delicious apricot preserves. These were so easy to make that I might start making them for breakfast more regularly. I think next time I'll try experimenting with margarine to make them a little healthier (although I would argue that the healthiness of the oats cancels out the butter)...so I'll let you know how that goes.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup preserves (whichever flavor you prefer...I used apricot)

(Note 3/20/10: I did try making these with margarine and they were still very tasty)

Steps:  
(Preheat oven to 350 degrees)

1. Grease an 8-inch square pan (or something similarly sized).
2. Combine brown sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, and rolled oats. 

3. Rub in the butter using your hands to form a crumbly mixture.

 

4. Press 2 cups of the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan.

5. Spread the jam to within 1/4 inch of the edge. 

6. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the top, and lightly press it into the jam.
7. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes in preheated oven, or until lightly browned.
8. Allow to cool before cutting into bars.

Roasted Shrimp and Orzo

To preface, I was not feeling very good when I made this, so I didn't take any pictures while cooking :(
If you like dill and lemon (two of my favorites), you will probably like this recipe. You could make this without the shrimp, or sub tofu or chicken.

Ingredients:

-¾ pound orzo pasta

-½ C freshly squeezed lemon juice (3 large lemons)

-½ C EVOO

-Some kosher salt & fresh ground black pepper

-1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined

-1 C chopped fresh dill

-1 hothouse cucumber, seeded, and medium diced

-1/8-1/4 C finely diced red onion

-¾ pound good feta cheese, large dice

Steps:

(Preheat oven to 400)

1. Fill a large pot with water, add 1 tablespoon of salt and a splash of oil, and bring the water to a boil. Add the orzo and simmer for 9 to 11 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it's cooked al dente. 

2. While orzo is cooking, place the shrimp on a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to combine and spread out in a single layer. Roast for 5 to 6 minutes in oven, until the shrimp are cooked through, but not overcooked.   

3. Once orzo is done, drain and pour into a large bowl. 

4. Whisk together the lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp of pepper. Pour over the hot pasta and stir well.

5. Add the shrimp to the orzo and then add the dill, cucumber, onion. Toss well. Add the feta and stir carefully. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour to allow the flavors to blend, or refrigerate overnight. If refrigerated, taste again for seasonings and bring back to room temperature before serving.

It's looking to be

a very busy week, so I likely won't be able to post till next week...but check back then because I already have some plans to do some baking (thanks to my friend Jess sharing some of her awesome recipes). Oh, and I'm going to make this orzo-dill-shrimp dish my mom made that was sooo yummy and flavorful.